Your repositories.
I work in the stack, tools and release process your team already uses. The work stays close to the people who will maintain it.
How we work / Clear from the start
A clear plan.
Visible progress.
No mystery.
You bring the problem. I bring the engineering. We agree on a useful first step, build in reviewable steps, and check that the result does what your business needs.
See the path from here- Availability
- Open to new work
Timing and capacity are discussed for your engagement.
- First conversation
- About 30 minutes
An introduction, the overall problem, and what we need for the next step.
- Contract estimate
- Around $135/hour
Depends on what is being asked. Scope and final pricing are agreed before work starts.
- Through rollout
- I stay involved
Support through the rollout, with findings and next steps documented.
01 / From the first conversation
Small enough to review.
Useful enough to matter.
A new product and an existing bottleneck need different first moves. Both deserve a clear goal and a way to know the work helped.
- 01
Understand the real problem.
We start with about 30 minutes to introduce ourselves, outline the problem and goal, and identify what we need to cover before the next step.
What you leave withAn initial understanding of the goal and what is needed for step two. - 02
Choose a useful first move.
For an existing system, I establish a baseline. For a new product, we choose the first useful slice. Scope, access, pricing basis and review points are agreed before work starts.
What you leave withA defined first step, with a way to check the result. - 03
Build where you can see it.
Changes happen in small, reviewable steps, with tests and your team’s review process. You see what changed and why before it reaches production.
What you leave withWorking changes, tests and a clear review trail. - 04
Prove it. Leave the context.
I stay involved through rollout. We check the result against the goal, and I write down what changed, what was measured, and what is worth doing next, so the work stays useful after the engagement.
What you leave withThe result, its limitations, and documented next steps.
The work should never feel like a black box
Close to the code.
Clear on the decisions.
You work directly with Austin, from the first conversation through the changes running in production.
Visible decisions.
You can review the change, understand the tradeoffs, and see the tests. AI helps with the work; responsibility stays with me.
Context that stays.
Findings and next steps are written down. You can use them to continue together or plan the next piece with your own team.
02 / Choose the relationship
One problem.
Or part of your team.
A defined project, a contract engineer, or the right full-time role. The arrangement should fit the work.
03 / AI, with boundaries
Your data sets
the ground rules.
AI is part of my toolkit. Tool choice, permitted data and processing terms are agreed for your project before access.
- 01 / Data boundaryNo private data involved
- Claude and Codex
Code and tasks that hold nothing private.
- 02 / Data boundaryData has to stay private
- Zero-data-retention endpoints
The provider processes the request and keeps nothing afterwards.
- 03 / Data boundaryData must not leave
- Models on local hardware
The data never leaves the machine.
Before we start
A few useful
answers.
You should understand who does the work, how decisions are made, and what happens next.
See results and their limits ↗Who does the work?
Austin Lippert, the owner of Aternex LLC, does the work himself, from the first call to the code in production. AI agents are tools he uses, under his review.
How is pricing set?
Contract estimates are generally around $135/hour, depending on what is being asked. Scope and final pricing are agreed before work starts.
How quickly will I hear back?
I reply within two business days. A booked call skips the wait: pick a time on the calendar.
Do you work in person?
Yes, around Knoxville, Oak Ridge, Kingston and Lenoir City. Everywhere else, the work is remote, anywhere in the US.
Are you open to a full-time role?
Yes. Most requests are for contract work, but a full-time W-2 role is just as welcome when the work fits: modernizing legacy code and databases, or building a new product end to end.
Can you work inside our existing stack?
Yes. On contract or on staff, Austin works in the languages, tools and process your team already uses. His defaults are .NET and TypeScript, and he moves the stack you have toward its current long-term support release.